It was held in the state capital, Vijayawada.

The preliminary stage had been organized in the past few months in different parts of the state by the United Forum for Quranic Studies (UFQS).

UFQS chairman Md Dawood said the organization had been conducting Quranic competitions to encourage Muslim children to read the Holy Quran.

He announced that 8,000 students from various parts of the state took part in the competition. About 500 students entered the finals and had formed six groups.

The finalists were given a cash prize of Rs 5,000 each and the three from each group were given Rs 4500 each. A total of Rs 2.7 lakh prize money was distributed to the winners on the occasion, said Dawood.

Jamath Islam Hind AP executive presidents Rafiq said for the past few years, the organizers have been holding this program. Children were addicted to TV, mobile phones and video games like shooting, fighting and robbery. These kind of competitions will develop moral values, he said.

Chief guest for the program, UFQS Telangana and AP former president Abdul Basit Anwar distributed prizes.

Source: The Hans India